Flag of Bolivia
|Use = National Flag |Symbol = |Proportion = 15:22 |Adoption = October 31, 1851 |Design = A horizontal tricolor of red, yellow and green with the national coat of arms centered on the yellow band. |Image2 = Flag of Bolivia.svg |Use2 = Civil flag |Proportion2 = 15:22 |Adoption2 = October 31, 1851 |Design2 = A horizontal tricolor of red, yellow and green. |Image3 = Banner of the Qulla Suyu.svg |Noborder3 = |Nickname3 = Wiphala |Morenicks3 = banner of the Qulla Suyu |Use3 = 111000 |Symbol3 = |Proportion3 = 1:1 |Adoption3 = February 7, 2009 |Design3 = Banner composed of a 7-by-7 square patchwork in seven colours, arranged diagonally. |Designer3 = |Image4 = Naval Ensign of Bolivia.svg |Use4 = 000001 |Proportion4 = 2:3 |Image5 = Naval Jack of Bolivia.svg |Noborder5 = |Nickname5 = Naval jack of Bolivia (Bara de proa) |Morenicks5 = |Use5 = |Symbol5 = |Proportion5 = 1:1 |Adoption5 = |Design5 = A red, yellow and green square }} in La Paz.]] The national flag of Bolivia was originally adopted in 1851. The state flag and ensign (and war flag) is a horizontal tricolor of red, yellow and green with the Bolivian coat of arms in the center. According to one source, the red stands for Bolivia's brave soldiers, while the green symbolizes fertility and yellow the nation's mineral deposits. Overview According to the revised Constitution of Bolivia of 2009, the Wiphala is considered a national symbol of Bolivia (along with the flag, national anthem, coat of arms, the cockade; kantuta flower and patujú flower). (Article 6. II. State symbols are the flag tricolor red, yellow and green; the Bolivian national anthem; coat of arms; the wiphala; the cockade; the flower of kantuta and the flower of patujú.) Constitution of Bolivia Despite its landlocked status, Bolivia has a naval ensign used by navy vessels on rivers and lakes. It consists of a blue field with the state flag in the canton bordered by nine small yellow five-pointed stars, with a larger yellow five-pointed star in the fly. The nine small stars represent the nine departments of Bolivia, and the larger star the nation's right to access the sea (access that it lost in 1884 in the War of the Pacific). Description Design and dimensions The national flag of Bolivia is described as a tricolor rectangle, with the colors red, yellow and green, in a ratio of 1:1:1, meaning three horizontal bands, with the red on the superior part occupying a third of the flag's width, yellow in the middle band using the same width, and green in the inferior part, using the last third. The dimensions of the flag had not been defined since its adoption in 1851. Supreme Decree No. 27630 of 2004 finally established that the size of the national flag be of 7.5 squares width by 11 squares long, a square can be any size, but always using the ratio 15:22. Color and symbolism The first description of Bolivia's national flag, together with the significance of these, were first established by the Supreme Decree of 1888 during the government of President Gregorio Pacheco, which specifies that: * * * The exact colors of the Bolivian flag have been established by the Supreme Decree of 2004: The colours of the tricolor can also be found in the Bolivian Wiphala. The Wiphala has been included into the national colours of the Bolivian Air Force such as on the executive Dassault Falcon 900EX. The Wiphala is also officially flown on governmental buildings such as the Palacio Quemado and parliament alongside the tricolor since the introduction of the revised 2009 constitution. Historical flags File:Banner of the Qulla Suyu.svg|Wiphala banner of the Qulla Suyu (Incan, again since 2009) File:Flag of Bolivia (1825-1826).svg | Bandera Menor (1825–1826) File:Flag of Bolivia (state, 1825-1826).svg | Bandera Mayor (1825–1826) File:Flag of Bolivia (1826-1851).svg | Bandera Menor (1826–1851) File:Flag of Bolivia (state, 1826-1851).svg | Bandera Mayor (1826–1851) File:Flag of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation.svg | Peru-Bolivian Confederation (1836–1839) File:Flag of Bolivia (militar).svg | Armed Forces flag (until 2010). Flag ratio: 15:22 See also *Wiphala *Coat of arms of Bolivia References External links * Category:Flags of Bolivia Category:National symbols of Bolivia Bolivia Category:1851 establishments in Bolivia